Blanco hoping for one more World Cup go-around

Mexico jumped into second place of the CONCACAF hexagonal en route to the 2010 World Cup on Wednesday.

In a hard-fought game, it came down to penalty on Giovani dos Santos. Captain Cuauhtémoc Blanco went up to take it, and put El Tri up 1-0. However, Blanco is still warning that Mexico has yet to officially qualify for the World Cup in South Africa.

The game at the Azteca took over an hour to crack, and Blanco credited a focused team on the result.

"I think that we took an important step today," said the Chicago Fire player after the game. "We have to keep working because we haven't qualified yet."

Mexico had many opportunities for goal, but Blanco noted a defensive Honduras worked to keep the score level for a majority of the game.

"We were superior all game, but we knew that this team was coming here to defend."

Despite his 36 years of age, Blanco hopes to make Mexico's roster for in 2010.

"God willing, I hope to be," he added. "Right now we only have think about qualifying and then we'll see. We're not qualified yet, but we only need a few more points. We hope to qualify soon."

Dos Santos said after the game that Blanco has contributed to the state of the Mexican team.

"For me, 'Cuau' has always been a role model to follow," said the young star. "He's an idol for me. I think that he's a player with intelligence and that has helped us a lot."